Syrian ex-FIFA referee now runs grocery store in Turkey

By Sercan Kucuksahin

KAYSERI, Turkey (AA) - He used to officiate FIFA matches at international destinations, now Al-Hmidi Chaker -- a middle-aged refugee from bombed out Syria’s Aleppo district – sells ice cream and eggs from a small grocery store in central Kayseri province.

Chaker told Anadolu Agency that he was forced to flee his home in Syria three years back due to intense clashes and airstrikes.

He now runs the grocery store that he rented in order to provide for his family.

He said he choose Kayseri because his relatives called him there. Most of his customers are displaced Syrians like him, he said.

He recalled his many stints as a referee at international football matches.

I first applied to be a FIFA referee in 1989, he told Anadolu Agency.

After two years of probation and three years of internship, Al-Hmidi said he finally managed to go on the field as a first-degree referee in Syria. He then got his FIFA license after taking a test in 2004.

Al-Hmidi said: “It started out as a pastime for me in Syria, but I later became one of the known referees of the Arab world.

“I managed many international matches.”

Chaker, who is now in his 50s, served as an assistant referee in the 2006 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers’ for the Palestine-Iraq match.

He also served in the Saudi Arabia-Singapore, Qatar-China, Uzbekistan-Japan and Saudi Arabia-North Korea matches in 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.

Talking about the huge turn in his life from being a referee to a store keeper, Chaker said he never gave up on hope and expressed his desire to work as a referee again, “at least in the amateur league”.